


If Living Is Without You

by GhostFan77



Category: Ghost (Sweden Band)
Genre: 1850s, 1889, Anal, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst, Angst and Tragedy, Arno river, Awkward Flirting, Blood, Blood Drinking, Blood Loss, Blow Jobs, Bookstores, Boys Kissing, Character Death, Character Turned Into Vampire, Comfort, Comfort Sex, Conflict, Conversations, Death, Decisions, Demons, Destruction, Diary/Journal, Difficult Decisions, Dirty Talk, Eiffel Tower, Elevators, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Europe, Exhibitionism, Explosions, Exposition Universelle, F/M, Falling In Love, Family, Family Issues, Fights, Firenze | Florence, First Impressions, First Kiss, First Meetings, First Time, First Time Blow Jobs, Flirting, Foreshadowing, French Kissing, Ghouls, Grief/Mourning, Heartbreak, Hotels, Inspired by Interview With the Vampire, Interrupted First Time, Interviews, Italy, Jealousy, Kissing, Life-changing decisions, Love, Love Triangles, M/M, Memories, Modern Era, Monastery, Monks, Near Death, Near Death Experiences, New Love Interest, Oral Sex, Paris (City), Photographs, Premonition, Public Display of Affection, Rescue, Reverse Big Bang Challenge, Romantic Gestures, Self-Destruction, Sex, Soul Bond, Soulmates, Stagecoach, Stranger Sex, Strong Female Characters, Suffering, Threesome - M/M/M, Tragedy, Tragedy on the Horizon, Travel, Uncertainty, Vampire Bites, Vampire Cardinal Copia, Vampire Turning, Vampires, Wealth, love square, semi-public groping, things will never be the same, underage sex (brief mention)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-11-28
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:13:36
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 17,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26418511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GhostFan77/pseuds/GhostFan77
Summary: A young man discovers an old journal in a bookstore belonging to a Satanic vampire.Written for the Ghost BC Reverse Big Bang 2020 event; artwork by the wonderful celestial-space-bee
Relationships: Aether Ghoul | Omega Ghoul/Original Female Character(s), Cardinal Copia/Omega | Aether Ghoul, Cardinal Copia/Papa Emeritus III, Cardinal Copia/Papa Emeritus III/Omega | Aether Ghoul, Cardinal Copia/Papa Emeritus III/Omega | Aether Ghoul/Original Female Character, Papa Emeritus III/Omega | Aether Ghoul
Comments: 79
Kudos: 58
Collections: Ghost BC Reverse Big Bang 2020





	1. Interview With A Vampire

He stood before the swanky hotel, looking upon it with equal parts excitement and apprehension. “What am I getting myself into?” he muttered to himself before taking a final drag from his cigarette. He rarely smoked, yet he was on his last from a pack that he had just bought yesterday. The young man was always burdened with stress atypical of someone his age; he worked two jobs to support himself, his widowed mother, and his younger siblings, while taking online screenwriting classes and trying (but mostly failing) to have some sort of a life.

Yet this wasn’t the source of the anxiety that had caused him to smoke an entire pack of the cheapest cigarettes he’d been able to find in less than twenty-four hours: he was about to meet a purported vampire.

He exhaled, expelling the smoke from between his lips, before walking to the nearest trash receptacle to dispose of the cigarette butt. He carefully snuffed it out, and then deposited it in the opening atop the brass-colored garbage can’s canopy top.

“Here goes nothing,” the young man sighed as he walked closer and closer to the luxury hotel, not knowing if it might be the first day of the rest of his life, or if it might be the last. There was only one way to find out.

He entered the hotel and slowly crossed the lobby as he searched for the elevator he’d been directed to take. His vampiric host was seemingly well-to-do; he was staying in the penthouse, and he had informed the young man that there was a separate lift for the penthouse and suites. He headed in its direction once he set his sights upon it.

The young man hit the “up” button, and the doors parted a moment later. He stepped inside and was greeted by the lift attendant. “Penthouse, please,” he mumbled in response, to which the attendant nodded. The doors closed, and the young man found himself studying his reflection in the elevator’s mirrored interior. He was wearing his best clothes…a white button-up shirt devoid of stains, black slacks that were a bit faded but without any holes, and the black Chucks he tried to keep for special occasions…yet he felt woefully underdressed given his luxurious surroundings. He did his best to swallow his insecurities as the lift ascended and carried him towards an unknown fate.

It had all begun innocently enough. The young man had stumbled across an old journal as he sorted donations at the second-hand bookstore for which he worked part-time. He had set it aside after its elegant and ornate appearance had caught his attention and set him on his current path. He’d flipped through its pages during his break and had found its contents so intriguing that he had bought it before the end of his shift with some of the money he had set aside that week for gasoline; disposable income wasn’t a luxury that he and his family had, and every cent he spent was strictly budgeted.

The young man had spent every spare moment over the next three days reading the antique journal, and it haunted him for several days after that. The story that unfolded over the many pages had told a compelling tale of love and heartbreak, of the loss of one faith and the finding of another, of vampires and demons, of Satanism and sex. A few days later, he received a message via Messenger from a gentleman named Luka Copia, who claimed to be the owner of the journal. It had been stolen nearly a century ago by a former acquaintance, and he was hoping to get it back, thus providing the genesis for their meet-up today.

The elevator announced its arrival at the penthouse level with a soft _ding_ , and the young man thanked the attendant as the doors opened. He stepped off the lift before glancing first to his right, and then to his left after being greeted by his own reflection in the mirrored wall at the opposite end of the short hallway that contained the elevator and the penthouse entry.

The young man turned towards the door to his left, took a deep breath, and took a few steps forward before stopping once he was unable to go any farther. As he raised his arm to knock on the door, it opened to reveal what appeared to be a middle-aged man with mismatched eyes and chestnut brown hair. He was dressed in a light pink button-up shirt, tight black pants, and black shoes that looked more expensive than all of the clothing the young man owned, combined.

“Mister…Copia?” he asked as his own eyes darted between the older man’s green eye and its icy blue counterpart. “ _Si_ ,” he rasped in an accent that sounded like it could be Italian in origin. “Thank you for coming. Please…” Copia stepped back and gestured for his guest to enter. “Come in.”

A chill went up the young man’s spine, and he was reticent to cross the threshold; it didn’t go unnoticed by Copia. “No harm will come to you,” he assured his guest, and his palpable sincerity was enough to coax the younger man inside.

“Would you like something to drink?” Copia asked as he escorted his guest beyond the entryway and into the richly-appointed living room area. The younger man noticed how the floor-to-ceiling windows were covered with what he surmised to be motorized blackout shades to keep sunlight from entering the room, giving it a cavernous appearance. “Water, please,” he replied, hoping for a sealed bottle but feeling it might be rude to explicitly ask for one. His host nodded before walking across the room to the kitchen area while the young man tried not to gape at the penthouse’s interior.

Copia soon returned with a bottle of water, and the young man accepted it with a grateful nod when it was offered to him. The older man sat down on a dark blue velvet accent chair and gestured towards the brown leather sofa that sat perpendicular to his chair.

“Please,” he rasped. “Have a seat.” The young man maneuvered passed the dark wood and glass coffee table in front of the sofa so he could sit down. “I believe you have something of mine…?” Copia wasted no time in getting to the crux of their meeting. “Yes,” the young man replied as he first leaned forward to place his bottle of water on a coaster atop the coffee table before removing the backpack that had been affixed to his back.

He opened the bag, reached inside, and carefully removed the journal before handing it to Copia. The older man sat back in his chair, swung one leg over the other, and gazed at the journal as he reverently ran his hand over its cover. “I…I never thought I would see this again,” he said in a near-whisper without looking at his guest.

“It came in at the bookstore I work at,” the young man offered. “It caught my attention right away.” Copia nodded as he began to carefully turn through the pages. “I…I’m sorry that I read it, Mr. Copia.”

“Copia,” he rasped in response. “Not necessary to say ‘mister’, nor is it necessary to apologize.” The older man sighed as his mismatched eyes finally moved to his guest. “I never thought I would see it again.” He paused for a moment before continuing. “I suppose you have questions…?”

The younger man hesitated for a moment before nodding in response. “You are going to school for screenwriting?” Copia asked as he curiously tilted his head. “Yes,” the young man replied. “I’m taking online classes.”

Copia nodded. “ _Si_ , that’s right,” he commented as he recalled their Messenger conversation before pausing a moment to consider his words. “You’ve had a difficult life.” It wasn’t so much a question as an observation, and the young man gave a resigned sigh as he nodded without otherwise responding. “What would you have done with the journal had I not contacted you?”

The young man contemplated his answer before offering a slight shrug. “I would’ve tried to adapt it into a screenplay, sir,” he replied with a hint of a smile. “It was unlike anything I’ve read before, and I could see it so clearly in my head as I was reading it.”

Copia considered the young man’s words for a long moment before he offered a response. “I would be amenable to that,” he rasped to the surprise of his guest. “Wh-what?” the young man sputtered.

“I will keep my journal,” he elaborated. “But I will recount the story for you, and you may record it as you ask any questions you might have to help in your adaptation. And if you have any further questions, you may reach out to me.”

After some deliberation, it was decided that the interview of sorts would take place that same day since not only was Copia in town, but also because his guest didn’t have work or any other obligations that required his attention. The young man tested the recording function on his phone as his host procured a glass of red wine for himself, and then the two got started.

“How…how did you become a vampire?” he asked, to which Copia softly chuckled. “Before we get to that, allow me to start from the beginning,” the older man rasped. He took a drink from his goblet, and then he continued. “It was the 1850s, and I was fresh out of the seminary. I was traveling through Florence to a parish in a neighboring village, where I’d been assigned to serve as its assistant priest. But If I had been entirely honest with myself, I knew that fate would somehow step in and that I’d never reach my intended destination.”

“Looking back, I should’ve known immediately upon meeting the dark-haired stranger at the monastery in which we’d both sought refuge in our journeys that my life would never be the same. The handsome man’s heterochromatic gaze that matched my own seemed to see through me and the act I’d been putting on since…” Copia sighed. “…since long before I joined the seminary. I denied my dark desires and did my very best to stifle them, you see, yet the long-denied feelings percolated to the surface the moment he and I became acquainted…”


	2. A Leap of Faith

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A decision is made that forever alters Copia's life.

The older man paused; his facial features softened, and a dreamy smile spread across his lips as he recalled the beginning of the relationship that had provided him with so much: love, a home, a purpose, and a sense of belonging. “That was Terzo, correct?” the young man queried before twisting the top off his bottle and taking a swig of water.

Copia’s mismatched eyes met his guest’s, and he nodded in confirmation. “ _Si_ ,” he rasped in response. “My darling Vincenzo, long before his ascent to leader of our ministry.” The young man nodded as he formulated his next question. “Are you and Terzo still together?” he asked, to which Copia softly chuckled. “ _Si_ ,” he replied. “It has been a rocky road at times, and Vincenzo himself would acknowledge that he’s mostly to blame, but we are still together.” The older man gestured in the direction of a staircase that led to the penthouse’s second level. “He is currently asleep, but he will join us once he awakes from his slumber.”

The younger man’s eyes narrowed as he considered his next question. “Is that… _normal_ …?”

Copia huffed out an amused laugh. “Daylight does not agree with us due to our… _condition_ ,” he explained to his guest. “We do not need to sleep to function, per se, but we do need to avoid daylight. How we choose to spend the daytime hours varies. Vincenzo likes to sleep, while I prefer to read or further my education.” The older man was quick to notice the way the young man’s head tilted in curiosity, and he continued after taking another drink of his red wine. “I’ve amassed several online degrees over the past decade or so.” He elaborated. “Modern technology has complicated so many things, yet it has made the world a smaller place and made so many things possible that we never could’ve fathomed in my youth.”

The young man shook his head as he emitted a low whistle. “I can only imagine the things you’ve seen in your lifetime, Mr. Copia,” he marveled, and his host hummed in agreement. “Indeed,” he affirmed. “I’ve seen the world several times over, and I owe it all to my Vincenzo. My life truly began when we met.” He took a sip from his goblet, and his guest waited patiently until he continued. “As I was saying, meeting Vincenzo forced me to confront some long-denied feelings. I had thoroughly planned my trip, and my itinerary allowed a five-day buffer. I had intended to stay for only one night so I could settle in at the rectory I’d be living in, but I decided to spend at least one more night to see if anything would happen with my Terzo. The first time our eyes met across the dinner table, it felt like I was being seen for the first time.”

Copia softly chuckled. “I was terrified when he attempted to flirt with me. I was young and inexperienced, and nobody had ever displayed any interest in me before. He was so charming and beautiful, and unlike anyone I’d ever met. Our rooms were next to each other, and that first night, I had hoped that he would come to my room and show me everything I’d been missing.”

“Did he?” the young man interjected, to which his host sighed and shook his head. “Unfortunately not, and I soon found out why.” He huffed out a rueful laugh. “I could hear them clear as day from where I laid. Vincenzo had managed to entice one of our hosts into his bed. I sometimes wonder what happened to that monk after he broke his vow of celibacy.”

The young man was unable to stifle a giggle, and Copia smirked as he shrugged and rolled his eyes. “I thought he had lost interest, but I quickly found out otherwise for he invited me to go on a walk with him after breakfast the next morning. I said ‘yes’, of course. And so we went for a walk along the Arno River and got to know each other. He was charming and surprisingly sweet and intelligent, two attributes that I honestly hadn’t anticipated, and we had more in common than I ever thought possible. We were both struggling not only with our respective faiths, but also with our lots in life.”

“Do you think he would’ve renounced his role in the ministry had he not met you?” the younger man ventured, and his host responded with a nod. “ _Si_ ,” he replied. “You see, we put each other on different trajectories. I struggled with my faith because those with desires such as my own were vilified in my church, while he struggled with his because it was _expected_ of him, and he had no choice in the matter. When he showed me the way of his faith—how it encouraged the pursuit of what you desired—it renewed his own over time, and together we’ve served our Dark Lord for more than one hundred and fifty years. But there was no way to know that at the time. The only thing I knew was that he hid so much vulnerability beneath all of that charisma and charm, and I quickly found myself falling for him despite the brevity of our acquaintance. And I wasn’t alone…”

***

_“Luka?” the future Papa said in a near-whisper as he took the other man’s hand and brought them both to a stop. Copia turned to face his dark-haired companion as the other man did the same, and the young assistant priest tilted his head curiously, silently encouraging Terzo to continue._

_Vincenzo grimaced and let out a shaky breath before he again spoke. “I know we’ve only just met,” he began. “But you should consider coming home to Sweden with me—“_

_The other man’s face twisted with uncertainty. “I—I don’t know, Vincenzo,” he rasped in response. “Father Marino is expecting me, and—“_

_“And he will find another, caro,” Terzo murmured as his free hand cupped the other man’s cheek. “You come with me, serve my family’s ministry where you’ll be appreciated, where you can be yourself and indulge in all that you desire.”_

_Luka’s mouth opened and closed as he tried but failed to formulate a response. Terzo’s hand felt so soft and warm against his skin, and he’d never been touched with such tenderness. His other hand soon moved to cup Copia’s other cheek, and Luka watched the other man as he first licked his lips and then slowly leaned forward until their lips met._

_Terzo’s lips gently moved against Copia’s as the would-be assistant priest stood frozen in place. He hadn’t quite overcome his shock, yet he soon found himself kissing the other man back. He’d never been kissed and didn’t know if he was doing it right, but his handsome companion didn’t seem to mind or even to notice._

_Luka momentarily allowed himself to get lost in Terzo, but that came to an end when he felt the other man’s tongue run along his bottom lip. He pulled away, stepping backwards and out of Vincenzo’s grasp. “I…I can’t…” he mumbled before turning and fleeing in the direction of the monastery. “Cazzo!” Terzo hissed to himself prior to following Luka. “Copia, wait!”_

_But Copia did not wait, and soon, he was back in his room at the monastery. He slammed the door shut, and then sunk to the floor with the door against his back and his head in his hands as hot tears flowed down his cheeks. “What have I done…?” he sobbed to himself._

_A few short minutes later, there was a knock on his door. “Luka,” Terzo pleaded. “Per favore, caro…”_

_Vincenzo was not a patient man. The youngest of three, he was used to getting his way, or to throwing a tantrum until he got his way. He managed to maintain his composure, however, and his patience was rewarded several minutes later when Copia finally caved and opened the door for him._

_Each stood on opposite sides of the threshold, mismatched eyes gazing intently into mismatched eyes until Luka made the first move. He took the other man’s face in his hands, not unlike how his face had been held by Terzo’s less than twenty minutes earlier. Their lips came together in a violent collision that Vincenzo hadn’t seen coming, yet he kissed Copia back as fervently as the other man was kissing him. He pushed Luka backwards into the room and kicked the door shut behind them so they’d be out of view from their hosts, and he didn’t stop until the backs of Copia’s legs met his bed._

***

“But it didn’t happen then, did it…?” the young man asked with wide eyes as his host recounted what had almost been his first time with his beloved Terzo. “Eh…heh-heh, no,” Copia replied with a sigh. “As you might recall, we were interrupted by one of our hosts walking in on us as Terzo was—eh, _preparing_ me, and we were subsequently kicked out of the monastery.”

The two men shared a laugh over Copia’s recollection before the older man continued. “The brothers kindly allowed us to dress and quickly pack, and then we were escorted off the premises and told in no uncertain terms to never return. My Terzo took it in stride while I felt like my world was coming to an end. A half hour later, we found ourselves at a _ristorante_ down the street. I was…not in a good place…and I vaguely recall Vincenzo conversing with some other men, and somehow, he was able to arrange for our travel out of Florence.”

“When we left the _ristorante_ an hour later, a stagecoach awaited us outside…”

***

_“I…I need to tell them where we’re taking you,” Terzo explained in a strained voice, as if the words pained him as they passed his lips. His eyes met Luka’s for a moment before he looked away, refocusing his attention on the men that were loading their belongings on the stagecoach. Copia silently contemplated his options: carry on with his original plan to travel to his new parish and hope word of his transgression didn’t somehow follow him to the neighboring village, or take a leap of faith and leave the country he’d known as home for his entire life to start anew with Terzo in Sweden. As indecision and anxiety gnawed away at him, Luka had an unexpected moment of clarity._

_And with that, his decision was made._


	3. A Taste, A Touch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terzo and Copia embark on a long journey together.

“Truth be told, I had never before left Italy,” the older man admitted with a slightly-sheepish grin. “It was a time of a lot of firsts for me, but in that moment of clarity, I knew I was doing the right thing. The drivers helped us into the stagecoach after our belongings had been stowed, and the storm curtains were drawn at Terzo’s request to lend us some privacy.” Copia paused for a moment, softly chuckling as he recalled their journey. “I have no doubt that the drivers knew what we were doing, but at least for their sake, the combined sounds of the stagecoach itself and the horses’ hooves against the terrain were enough to negate any noises we made.”

The two men shared a laugh, and Copia took a drink from his goblet before he continued. “The desire that burned bright in his eyes as our journey together began left me feeling more exposed than I’d ever felt in my life to that point—even more so than when we’d been interrupted at the monastery,” he quipped with a smirk, and the younger man chuckled in appreciation. “I was going to ask about that, Mr. Copia,” he chortled in response.

Copia nodded as his smirk spread into a closed-mouth smile. “ _Sì_ ,” he replied. “As I thought you might. And believe it or not, that desire burns even brighter so many years later, despite all that we’ve been through…”

***

_As the drivers ascended the stagecoach to the drivers’ seat, Copia could feel Terzo’s mismatched gaze while he distractedly surveyed the generously-appointed interior. The amply-padded seats were upholstered in rich burgundy leather that extended upwards to where the sides met the ceiling, and the interior was complemented by an ornate ceiling cloth covering. The fallen holy man had never traveled in such luxury, and he was in awe of his companion’s ability to arrange such grand accommodations given the haste of their departure._

_Copia jumped when the stagecoach lurched forward; he cast a sheepish glance at Terzo, who only offered an amused smirk as he undressed the other man with his eyes. Luka could feel a flush creep up his face as he continued his attempts to shift his attention to anything but the beautiful man next to him. “Luka…?” Terzo whispered as his fingers moved to Copia’s chin and gently guided it in his direction until their eyes met._

_“I…I’m nervous,” Copia quietly admitted as wrung his hands in his lap. “We will go slow,” Terzo assured his companion with a soft smile. “Let me make you feel good, caro. Va bene?”_

_Luka finally allowed his eyes to fully meet the dark haired man’s gaze. “Sì,” he rasped in response after several moments, and Terzo wasted no time in closing the distance between them, sliding across the smooth leather seat until his thigh was against Copia’s. “I…I don’t know what to do,” Luka whispered before Terzo pressed his index finger against Copia’s lips. “I know this, caro,” he murmured as he rested his forehead against the other man’s. “And I want you still…”_

_Terzo’s finger was replaced by his own lips as he kissed the other man. It was soft and tender, and full of restraint as Terzo held himself back as to not overwhelm Copia. He cautiously introduced his tongue after several seconds, cracking his eyes open to see how his inexperienced companion would react, and then relaxing again when the other man’s lips parted and welcomed the escalation._

_The raven-haired man had deflowered numerous virgins in the time he’d been sexually active. Now in his mid-20s, he’d lost his own virginity nearly a decade before and had become a skilled lover in the years since, capable of pleasing his companions no matter their gender or experience level. And while Terzo was notoriously impatient, he was an attentive lover that was especially considerate to those who hadn’t previously experienced pleasure of the sexual variety._

_It was Luka who first allowed his hands to wander, attempting to touch Terzo anywhere his hands would reach, and his dark-haired consort followed suit. Clothing was slowly removed as their exploration of each other continued. Their previous attempt had been a more frenzied affair with Luka overcoming his shyness long enough to beg Terzo to take him, and he had mostly skipped foreplay in order to prepare Copia to take his cock. But now that their circumstances were different, he intended to lavish Luka with all that he’d never before experienced._

_He took Luka’s cock in his hand, slowly stroking along his shaft and familiarizing himself with its topography. Copia gasped into their kiss at the sensation, never before experiencing anything other than his own hand and the guilt that had always followed immediately after he’d spilled his seed._

_Terzo broke the kiss but lingered in close proximity, their hot breath intermingling as their breathing became more and more labored. “So thick, Luka,” he murmured. “Want to taste you…” He ran his thumb over Copia’s sensitive glans, earning a needy whimper from his companion. “May I?”_

_Copia swallowed hard as he processed Terzo’s request, following with a quick nod after a few moments. His raven-haired consort licked his lips as he slid into position on the floor between Luka’s legs. He resumed his slow stroke as he pressed soft and wet kisses along Copia’s inner thighs, blazing a hot trail that left his companion gasping and moaning above him. He smirked to himself, knowing he’d only barely begun and was already having such a profound effect on his lover. Terzo couldn’t wait to see Luka’s reaction to his mouth._

_Terzo’s hand moved to the base of Copia’s member, and he looked up at his companion through half-lidded eyes. “Luka,” he murmured. “Look at me…” Copia had spent the past several minutes in a concupiscent daze; his eyes met Terzo’s and gradually came into focus. He watched as his dark-haired lover’s tongue came into contact with the underside of his cock and leisurely moved upwards, and his own mouth fell open as he processed the sensations he was experiencing for the first time. Terzo smirked and then made a show of swirling his tongue around Luka’s glans before taking his cockhead into his mouth._

_An obscene moan escaped from Copia’s lips as his hands scrambled for purchase, somehow deciding on attempting to cross himself and being interrupted by his companion during the process. Terzo grabbed Luka by the wrist with his free hand and allowed Copia’s cock to fall from his lips. “No, caro,” he gently chided the fallen holy man. “Your God calls this a sin, an abomination. My Dark Lord says ‘do it’, ‘enjoy it’. He encourages us to pursue pleasure, make each other feel good. You need to unlearn what you’ve been taught because it is wrong. You have much to learn, and I will show you the way. Capisce?”_

_Copia nodded in understanding as Terzo guided Luka’s hand to the side of his head, just above his ear. “You need something to hold on to, use this,” he instructed. “With both hands, caro. You can push me down, make me choke on your cock.” Luka’s cheeks pinkened at the words spoken by his companion, and he looked uncertain. “You will not hurt me, caro,” Terzo assured him. “I ask you to do this. I want for you to do this.” Copia hesitated for a moment, but ultimately nodded his understanding and brought his free hand to the other side of Terzo’s head._

_Terzo hummed in approval. “Bene, caro,” he praised his lover. “Now you take what you want from me…” He opened his mouth in invitation; Copia initially wavered, but did as instructed. Terzo offered no resistance as Luka pushed his head downward, his cock disappearing into the other man’s oral cavity until his nose was nudging against the thick thatch of hair on Copia’s pubic mound. Luka’s head lolled back against the padded seat, groaning as he held his lover’s head in place._

_Luka’s grasp eventually loosened, and Terzo took that as his signal to continue. After lifting his head for a quick breath, Copia’s member again disappeared into his mouth, and he began to suck him off in earnest. The sounds that Luka uttered spurred him on, creating an immense need for Terzo himself to be touched. His free hand sought and quickly found his cock, taking himself in his fist and attempting to relieve some of the needy ache that afflicted him. It wasn’t enough though; he desperately needed more._

_Terzo was reluctant to stop until he’d made the other man climax, but he ceased his oral assault nonetheless. He repositioned Copia so his ass was at the edge of the seat and his legs were spread and in the air before working his way from the other man’s balls to his perineum, and finally to his anus. Terzo swirled his tongue around the puckered flesh and eventually re-introduced his fingers as he prepared his companion for what was yet to come._

_As his meticulous preparation continued, he reached for his jacket with his free hand and managed to extract a small vial from an inner pocket; it contained a natural lubricant that had been formulated by some of the hellspawn that inhabited his family’s abbey. Terzo removed his fingers from Copia’s hole once he’d been stretched to his satisfaction, and he quickly poured some of the contents of the vial into his hand after removing the cover. He tossed the vial onto the seat next to Copia once the cover had been put back into place, next coating his cock in the lubricant as well as Luka’s entrance._

_Terzo wiped his hand on the nearest article of clothing—his own undershirt—before casting it aside and making his way to his feet. He grasped the back of the seat with one hand while the other was used to align his cock with Luka’s waiting hole. Terzo looked down upon his lover, flushed and sweaty, ready to be claimed by his raven-haired companion. “Per favore, Vincenzo,” he begged._

_He didn’t have to ask Terzo twice. His dark-haired lover slowly pushed his way inside of Copia until he was fully seated. He waited for several moments until Luka was ready for him to move, and then he worked his way to a steady thrust as he focused on making his lover feel as good as he felt whenever he found himself in Copia’s position. He watched as Luka’s eyes rolled to the back of his head with Terzo’s name falling from his lips like a mantra._

_Terzo was momentarily reminded of someone he loved back at the abbey, someone who undoubtedly was anxiously awaiting his return, someone who longed for him as he now longed for Copia, and in that moment, he felt a pang of guilt that quickly dissipated; there was nothing he could do about it now except wait until their journey had ended and they were back in Linköping. He’d deal with this individual then, he decided as he continued to fuck the fallen holy man into oblivion._

***

“It took us six days to travel from Florence to Gdańsk, Poland. We were on the move twenty-four hours a day, only stopping to replace the tired horses at the stage stations along our route and to eat during our stops. Vincenzo and I spent much of the time getting intimately acquainted with each other, sleeping when we felt the need. The drivers traded off; one would drive while the other either kept guard or slept, depending on where we were. Modern-day Poland was unstable at the time; it was split between Germany, Austria, and Russia, and its citizens spent much of the 19th century fighting for the restoration of their independence. Fortunately, there were no incidents during our trip, and we safely made it to Gdańsk.”

“From there, we took a ship bound for Stockholm. Vincenzo was able to negotiate a stop in Kalmar, Sweden, with the ship’s captain; a large sum of money aided their negotiations, and after a ten hour trip, I found myself on Swedish soil for the first time. Another stagecoach awaited us in Kalmar, driven by two ghouls that served his family’s min—“

“Are they actual ghouls, Mr. Copia?” the young man interjected with wide eyes. “Like, did they really come from hell?”

The older man took a moment to respond, taking a drink from his goblet before he continued. “Sì,” he replied. “They are bona fide hellspawn. Most are significantly older than myself and Vincenzo, although some were summoned during the 1890s, including our lone Aether Ghoul, who came to us after what happened with…” Copia allowed himself to trail off, and his eyes glazed over as he vacantly stared at the black marble floor.

“Omega?” the young man whispered after several moments had elapsed.

Copia blinked back his tears before he allowed his eyes to meet his guest’s. “Sì,” he rasped in response. “Omega.”


	4. The Catalyst

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Copia recounts his connection to Omega, and how it affected his relationship with Terzo.

Copia sighed after several more moments of silence had ticked by. “My apologies,” he rasped. “I’ve not spoken about Omega in quite some time. Even with Vincenzo…” The older man trailed off as he again fought the tears that threatened to spill. “It’s a sensitive subject. Omega blamed himself for what happened to us, and we’ve since blamed ourselves for what happened to him. But to fully understand, we must start with our arrival at the abbey.”

The vampire paused before reaching into one of his pants’ side-pockets and removing his smart phone. “Would you like to see Omega?” he asked, and his guest was quick to nod. Copia went to work, tapping away on the screen as he searched and quickly found the image he sought. He handed his phone to the younger man, who carefully grasped it with both hands as he studied the image on the screen. Three men sat close together on a dark-colored Victorian sofa with rolled arms and a tufted back. The young man immediately recognized Copia, who was sat to the left of another man with mismatched eyes.

“Is that Terzo in the middle?” the young man ventured as he cast a glance in Copia’s direction. “Sì,” the older man confirmed with a nod. “And that is Omega to his right.”

They were all well-dressed in men’s fashions of the late 19th century: black three-piece suits paired with white button-up shirts, black cravats, and black shoes. As the young man continued to examine the picture, he noticed that while Copia looked remarkably similar in the image to how he looked now, there was one key difference in his appearance. “Mr. Copia, the make-up around your eyes,” he began. “You weren’t wearing it in this picture.”

“I didn’t yet need it,” the older man replied. “This picture was taken two years before our encounter with the vampire. I was recovering from anemia at the time of our fateful trip, and it had caused dark circles to form under my eyes. And after I was turned, it became permanent.” He paused for a moment as he considered his words. “I was very self-conscious as a result, and that was how I came to wear greasepaint around my eyes.”

The young man nodded his understanding as his gaze returned to the phone he still held in his hands. His attention shifted to Omega; he was a handsome man whose hair was shorter than Copia and Terzo’s, parted off to the side and slicked back with pomade. Although the trio was seated, the young man could tell that the ghoul’s stature and build exceeded that of his companions. Thick rings adorned his ring fingers and one pinkie, and his eyebrows were furrowed and arched at dangerous angles, belying the poorly-concealed smirk that played on his lips. “We were moments away from laughing when that picture was taken,” Copia explained. “And we were trying desperately to hold ourselves together after ruining several other attempts with our outbursts.”

The older man smiled at the memory before taking a drink from his nearly-empty goblet. “We had come to an understanding in our relationship by that point,” he recounted. “The jealousy that had plagued our earlier years together had faded, and we lived a fairly harmonious existence. Omega was not only our lover, but he was also our protector and confidant. There was never a more faithful companion than him.” 

The young man handed the phone back to its owner, and instead of putting it back in his pocket, he set it on an arm of the chair atop his journal. “He was very handsome, Mr. Copia,” he said in earnest. The older man nodded in response before he spoke again. “Very much so,” Copia affirmed. “When I met him on the day of my arrival at the abbey, it felt like my heart was truly beating for the first time, and I felt an instant familiarity even though we’d never met before.”

“Because he was your soulmate,” the young man mused.

Copia sighed as tears again threatened. “Sì,” he replied with a sad smile. “My Vincenzo is a soulmate of a different kind, but Omega was…” The older man paused for a moment, clearing his throat before he continued. “As he explained to me, we’d been finding each other throughout my various lifetimes over the past five hundred years. I was his promised one, and the Dark Lord would see to it that we were reunited during every course of life. And without fail, we had always found each other. It was a bit of a cruel joke that it was Vincenzo who unknowingly brought us back together, and our bond ignited his jealousy.”

“Vincenzo had been involved with Omega prior to his departure from the abbey, and Omega had patiently awaited his return, not expecting him to have someone else with him, and certainly not for that ‘someone’ to be his soulmate. Vincenzo wanted to keep both of us to himself, and it was the jealous rages he would fly into that drove me into Omega’s arms. I…I loved them both. I didn’t want to choose, and neither did Omega. We were content with the love triangle we had found ourselves in, and it was Omega that always made me go back to Vincenzo. And once we were able to convince Vincenzo that we wanted him as much as we wanted each other, his jealousy waned as he finally accepted our triad. But before that, it was a different story…”

***

_Luka could still hear Terzo’s shouting as he ran through the empty candlelit corridors. It was the third time in less than two weeks that they’d fought like this; the third time in less than two weeks that he’d fled their shared quarters and sought refuge with another: Omega. As he made his way to the Quintessence Ghoul’s room, he tried to remember what had started tonight’s fight._

_It had been a such a good evening as they experimented with the greasepaint that Terzo would eventually have to wear when it came time for him to assume the anti-papacy. Copia had utilized a combination of white and black to fashion a skull design that better suited Terzo than the one his father wore. Terzo hadn’t wanted to leave Luka out of the fun; he put black greasepaint around his lover’s eyes, making him look somewhat like a panda, and capped the look with black paint on his upper lip._

_After some thought, he recalled how Terzo’s mood had shifted after he had suggested they go show the handsome Aether Ghoul their handiwork. And from there, it was all downhill._

_He found himself before Omega’s door moments later. Copia raised his arm, his hand fisted and ready to knock, but he stopped himself. It was well after midnight, and the Quintessence Ghoul was probably asleep. Although hadn’t he told Luka to come to him anytime Terzo was in one of his moods, regardless of the time?_

_And with that, he allowed himself to knock._

_Copia heard muffled voices, and he came to a sudden realization: Omega wasn’t alone. His heart sank, and a pit formed in his stomach; he contemplated his options, but with nowhere else to go, he felt he had none. Heavy footsteps followed the muffled voices, and then came the turn of the lock. The door opened just enough for the Quintessence Ghoul to see who had knocked. “Luka,” he mumbled with a yawn. “Is everything alright?” A closer look at the other man answered his question; his eyes were still red, puffy and glassy, and his cheeks were damp and tear-stained._

_Omega opened the door enough to step into the corridor before pulling it almost closed behind him. Copia tried not to notice how he was only dressed in a pair of white linen underdrawers that did little to conceal his hardened member, and a flush crept up his face after he’d failed miserably. “What happened?” the Quintessence Ghoul asked as his brows drew together, all but forgetting the lovely Sister of Sin in his bed, awaiting his return._

_“Terzo…he…” Luka broke down again, his sobs echoing through the corridor. Omega was quick to pull him into his arms in an attempt to comfort the other man. Copia’s face was buried in his chest, and Omega repeatedly smoothed his hand over the back of the fallen holy man’s head as he held him close._

_Copia reluctantly pulled away once he had calmed down; being near the Aether Ghoul was soothing and set him at ease, but he again found himself considering his options since Omega no longer appeared to be one of them. “Where are you spending the night?” the Quintessence Ghoul asked as he studied the other man, noticing the greasepaint around his eyes and wanting to ask about it, but deciding against it; Luka shrugged in response. “You can spend the night here, if you want…?”_

_He looked up at Omega with wide eyes. “Are you sure…?” Copia sniffled in a small voice. “Your company…?” It was then that the Quintessence Ghoul remembered that he hadn’t planned to spend the night alone, even before Luka turned up on his doorstep. “Oh, ummm…” he mumbled with a soft chuckle as he scratched the back of his neck. “I…uhhhh, wait here for a moment, Luka. I’ll be right back…”_

_After Copia had nodded his assent, Omega disappeared into his room and closed the door behind him. He again heard muffled voices, and the door again opened after several moments had elapsed. A blonde Sister of Sin in a scandalously skimpy white linen nightgown emerged, and he recognized her as one of the Sisters he’d met the previous week. “Good night, Omega,” she purred before she then acknowledged Copia. “Good night, Luka.”_

_“Good night,” Copia mumbled as he watched her saunter down the dimly lit hallway._

_The sound of Omega clearing his throat brought his attention back to the handsome ghoul, and he noticed how the Quintessence Ghoul was holding the door open for him. “Come in,” he murmured as he inclined his head in the direction of his room. Luka shuffled through the doorway, and Omega closed the door behind him._

_A few candles burned from sconces hung upon the walls, providing Copia with enough light to see how the Quintessence Ghoul’s clothing was strewn across the floor en route to the bed, and as if he realized where Luka’s eyes were trailing, Omega bent forward and picked up the articles as he walked through the room. “Sorry,” he mumbled before tossing everything over a chair in the corner. The Quintessence Ghoul then crawled onto his bed and made himself comfortable. “Come on, Luka,” he softly beckoned the other man._

_This wouldn’t be Copia’s first time in Omega’s bed; he’d slept there the previous two times he’d sought sanctuary from Terzo after they’d been fighting, but the ghoul had worn a nightshirt. Luka gaped at the sight before him: the Aether Ghoul reclined slightly against his pillows with his hands behind his head and his never-ending legs crossed at the ankles. Copia also noticed that the distinct bulge in his underdrawers was still present, and he felt his own cock stirring as impure thoughts about the handsome ghoul flooded his mind._

_As if he could read Luka’s thoughts, Omega’s hands moved to undo the tie that held his drawers up before slowly pushing them down enough to expose his length. “Do you want it…?” the Quintessence Ghoul asked in a voice thick with need. He took himself in his hand and languidly stroked his shaft as Copia continued to stare._

_Luka bit his bottom lip; there was no denying that he wanted the Aether Ghoul, that he was drawn to him like a moth to a flame. He considered how both he and Omega were Terzo’s lovers, and he wondered how incensed Terzo would be if he too took the handsome ghoul as a paramour. As his fingers began working the buttons on his shirt, his decision was made: there was only one way to find out._

_Omega took great care in preparing him to take his cock once his clothes had been removed and he’d joined the ghoul in his bed. “Are you ready?” the Quintessence Ghoul murmured as his soft lips grazed over Luka’s ear. He’d utilized a copious amount of the lubricant the ministry’s Earth Ghouls concocted in mass quantities for the inhabitants of the abbey; his girth exceeded that of the man in his bed, whose cock was thick in its own right. “Sì,” he rasped. “Please, Omega…take me now! Per favore!”_

_Copia spread his legs and nearly folded himself in half as he presented himself to Omega. He grasped the backs of his knees and watched as the ghoul got into position. The Quintessence Ghoul wrapped his hand around the base of his cock and guided it to Luka’s entrance. He slowly eased his cockhead into the other man’s anus; it was still a tight fit despite the ample preparation. Copia’s back arched off the bed, keening at the stretch caused by the welcome intrusion of Omega’s member._

_The Quintessence Ghoul watched himself disappear inside of Luka’s hole, and he waited several moments once Copia had taken him to the hilt before he started to move. Luka struggled to maintain eye contact with Omega as the ghoul fucked him; his eyes continually threatened to roll back in his head as the Aether Ghoul made contact with his prostrate._

_Omega leaned forward, supporting himself with one arm braced against the pillow above Copia’s right shoulder, the other against the bed Luka’s left side. “How’s that feel…?” the Quintessence Ghoul asked in a low growl that made Copia’s cock throb. “Magnifico,” Luka groaned as he reached for his own member, only to have his hand swatted away by Omega._

_Copia whined in response, desperate for some relief; the Quintessence Ghoul chucked lowly as his right hand relocated to Luka’s cock. He moaned the ghoul’s name as he began a stroke that matched the pace of his own thrusts._

_It didn’t take long before Copia reached his end; he cried out his lover’s name as his seed spilled onto Omega’s fist and his own abdomen. The Quintessence Ghoul worked Luka through his climax before he removed his hand from the other man’s shaft. Omega brought his hand to his mouth and lapped at the cum until his hand was clean again; he then lowered himself until his lips met Copia’s. Luka’s lips parted in offering, and the Quintessence Ghoul’s tongue met the other man’s._

_Luka could taste himself on Omega’s breath, and the kiss quickly deepened as the Aether Ghoul’s thrusts gained momentum. The Quintessence Ghoul swallowed Copia’s moans as he fucked him into the mattress, and the room was filled with the sounds of their coupling._

_The kiss eventually came to its conclusion, and Omega’s mouth moved on, nipping and sucking Luka’s neck and chest, leaving marks that Terzo would undoubtedly see once Copia returned to their shared quarters. The Quintessence Ghoul knew this wouldn’t go over well with Terzo, but he also knew that he wasn’t trying to take Copia away from him; Terzo was just going to have to deal with it or he’d risk losing both of them._

_Omega lost himself in Luka as their fucking continued; Copia had regained his erection and orgasmed a second time before the Quintessence Ghoul reached his first. His end was nigh; his thrusts had grown increasingly erratic, and after a few final strokes into Luka, Omega buried himself balls deep and filled the other man’s ass with his hot cum. It was the first of many loads that Copia would be on the receiving end of on that night._

_They fucked deep into the night, and the Quintessence Ghoul was the first to awake the next morning. The candles had burned themselves out at some point, and dawn’s first rays were starting to fill the room as Omega gazed at his lover. He looked peacefully and beautifully wrecked; his head was turned to the side, and the make-up around his eyes was remarkably still mostly intact; his top lip, however, was a different story. The Quintessence Ghoul softly chuckled as he contemplated where the remnants of the lip paint had ended up; he had a few guesses, but he was currently too focused on surveying the marks he had left on Luka to inspect himself._

_Omega smoothed his hand over Luka’s ribcage as his lover’s chest gently rose and fell with each breath. His thumb passed over the love mark above Copia’s right nipple before moving to the one on the opposite side that was just under his collarbone, and he sighed to himself as he admired what his Dark Lord had bestowed upon him…even if Luka would never fully be his in this lifetime._

_He would just have to wait until the next._

***

Click on the link below to view the gorgeous artwork that the amazing celestial-space-bee did for this fic...

<https://1drv.ms/u/s!At48uFGuPfqlgcEduv0G9-95ogdimw?e=bkDTQT>


	5. La Tour Eiffel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Copia, Terzo, and Omega visit Paris for the Exposition Universelle.

The older man took a drink from his goblet, emptying it in the process. “Excuse me, _per favore_ ,” he rasped as he rose to his feet and walked across the room to the kitchen area. The young man leaned forward to grab his bottle of water. He twisted off the top, brought the bottle to his lips, and proceeded to take a long drink; he hadn’t previously realized how thirsty he’d become as he’d been listening to his host’s recollections.

Copia returned moments later with his goblet in one hand and another bottle of water for the young man in his other hand. He set it on another coaster on the coffee table next to the half-empty bottle before returning to his seat. The older man sat back and again swung one leg over the other.

“Mr. Copia, I might be getting ahead of things here,” the young man began. “But after you and Terzo were turned and became immortal—“

“We are _near_ -immortal beings,” Copia rasped. “We are not indestructible; far from it. But if we avoid that which could cause us harm, then we can live for a very long time.”

The young man nodded his understanding. “My question is, why was Omega so upset?” he pondered. “He wouldn’t have to lose you and Terzo; why wasn’t he happy about that? I mean, especially with how he kept losing you in previous lifetimes; that couldn’t have been easy for him.”

Copia was silent for several moments, and sadness clouded his features as the young man awaited his response. “Alas, it was not easy for him,” the older man eventually rasped. “I spent much time alone with Omega, and during that time, he’d recount our previous lifetimes together. I remembered none of it, of course, but I could _feel_ them. He had a photograph of us together from my previous lifetime, and paintings from prior lifetimes as photography hadn’t yet been invented.”

“That must’ve been quite a trip,” the young man pondered before whistling low.

The older man huffed out a laugh in response. “ _S_ _ì_ ,” he replied. “It very much was. To first find out that reincarnation is real, and then to hear about your previous lives, and _then_ to see your previous forms…it was what I think is called a ‘mind-fuck’.” The young man smiled as Copia paused to take a drink of wine. “As for why Omega was so upset, we shall get to that in due time.”

“In many ways, Omega was as responsible for my growth as a Satanist as Vincenzo was, and perhaps even more so. Through endless conversations, he truly helped me see beyond the religious indoctrination I’d been subjected to since I was a young boy. He encouraged my studies and was instrumental in my pursuit of knowledge. As the years passed by, I climbed the ranks in our ministry, and it was largely due to Omega’s support. He was able to see me achieve my cardinalship, but he was unable to see me achieve the anti-papacy.”

“I’m sure he would’ve been proud of you, Mr. Copia,” the young man said in earnest, which earned him a sad smile from his host. “ _S_ _ì_ ,” he replied. “Omega would’ve been incredibly proud. I know this. I _feel_ this. I served in that role for a quarter of a century before retiring and allowing someone who was younger with fresher ideas to succeed me. Change is necessary for the good of the ministry, and our congregation is now in the hands of someone I mentored since his early days as a Brother of Sin.” Copia paused for a moment. “It was immensely satisfying to see him climb the ranks as I had, and that is how I know the pride Omega must’ve felt with my own achievements.” The young man could see how Copia’s eyes glazed over as tears again threatened, and the older man paused to first draw in a long breath and then to exhale. “It is good to talk about Omega again, but it is not easy.” The vampire glanced at the time on his smart phone. “I would like to finish this before my Vincenzo awakes, if you do not mind.”

The young man shook his head. “Not at all, Mr. Copia,” he replied with a sympathetic smile. “No further explanation needed. I can see how difficult this has been for you, and I appreciate you taking the time to tell me your story, sir.” The older man momentarily bowed his head. “ _Grazie_ ,” he rasped. “But to continue the story, we eventually reached the stability in our relationship that we enjoyed until the time of our fateful trip to Paris. And that was when everything started to unravel.”

“The year was 1889, and we were in Paris for the _Exposition Universelle_. By then, our trio had expanded to unofficially include a fourth. Omega had taken to one of our lovely Sisters of Sin—a beautiful woman with long red hair and blue eyes. Other Siblings had come and gone from our relationship over the years, but none had been anything more than occasional playmates. Desi was different; she added a certain _je ne sais quoi_ that the others hadn’t, and even Vincenzo and I were smitten with her.”

“We were halfway through our two-week trip and had spent every night together. After a nice dinner at a restaurant on _Champs-de-Mars_ , we walked the short distance to the Eiffel Tower. It was the largest structure in the world at the time, and both Desi and Vincenzo were enamored with it. And it was at their behest on that night that we toured it for the third time that week…”

***

_Omega and Copia sat on a bench on the viewing platform, watching with amusement at the sheer glee displayed by Terzo and Desi as they enjoyed the view of the city. “How many times do you think we’ll come here before we go home?” the Quintessence Ghoul quipped to his lover as he leaned back and made himself as comfortable as he could. He crossed one leg over the other and extended an arm along the back of the bench behind Luka, while Luka rested his hand on his ghoul’s thigh and began a slow caress._

_Copia softly chuckled as he leaned against his solid companion. “They would come here nightly if we allowed them to, Omega,” Copia replied with a content smile as he felt his ghoul’s arm move so it was around his shoulders. “I think you might be right,” the Aether Ghoul murmured in response before both allowed a comfortable silence to fall upon them as they enjoyed each other’s company whilst they continued to watch Desi and Terzo’s wonderment._

_Omega was the first to speak after several minutes. “Would you and Terzo mind if I spent the night alone with Desi?” he asked as he turned his head and cast his gaze upon the man next to him. “Have you tired of us already?” Luka countered with a smirk. The Quintessence Ghoul pressed his lips against his companion’s forehead, a soft and tender gesture that made Copia melt against his ghoul. “No, min_ _älskade,” Omega mumbled. “You know that’s not the case.”_

_Luka sighed. “You are right, Omega,” he murmured. “I do not mind, on one condition…” Copia felt his ghoul smile against his forehead, which made him smile in turn. “Name your condition,” the Quintessence Ghoul replied with a soft chuckle._

_Copia tilted his head back slightly so he could look his ghoul in the eyes, and his heart skipped a beat or two when he saw the love they reflected. “Only if I get a night alone with you before we leave this city.”_

_Omega was silent as he contemplated his response, but Luka already knew the answer when he saw the mirth that flashed in his eyes, followed closely by lust. “I accept your terms,” he murmured as he lowered his head and covered Copia’s mouth with his own. Luka and his ghoul were far from alone, and they knew it; they were on the observation deck of a structure that would go on to have nearly two million visitors before the end of the Exposition Universelle, after all. But that didn’t stop Copia from relocating his hand to the Quintessence Ghoul’s crotch, where he found his ghoul was well on his way to being fully erect._

_The Aether Ghoul groaned into the kiss before he took the opportunity to deepen it by pushing his tongue beyond Luka’s lips, where it was eagerly received by his lover’s own tongue. Copia gently squeezed his ghoul’s member as the kiss continued to intensify, and it was with great reluctance that they parted to avoid getting too carried away with their desire for each other._

_“Maybe I should take you back to the hotel so I can have my way with you instead,” Omega growled as he nipped at Luka’s bottom lip, taking it between his teeth and playfully tugging it before releasing it again. “Tempting,” Copia whispered. “But we will do this another night, Omega.” He first gave the Quintessence Ghoul’s cock a final squeeze, and then he moved his hand back to his ghoul’s thigh. “Save this for Desdemo—“_

_“What’s that about me, gentlemen?”_

_Luka and Omega jerked their heads in the direction of the source of the sweet feminine voice: Desi. She and Terzo had approached without them noticing, and now they stood before them, hand-in-hand._

_Terzo quirked an eyebrow as his eyes zeroed in on the Quintessence Ghoul’s crotch. “I do not know, but it looks like our ghoul is in need of some…servicing,” he commented before suggestively licking his lips. “I think that might be for me, Terzo,” Desi informed him through a giggle._

_***_

“Omega and I shared the news regarding the night with Vincenzo and Desi, and Omega informed us that he had already secured a second room for the evening for himself and Desi. Vincenzo, however, surprised us all by offering to take the room for the night so they could have our suite to themselves. We parted company approximately an hour later after extended ‘good-byes’ and many kisses exchanged, with Omega and Desi returning to the hotel, while Vincenzo and I continued to explore the _Exposition Universelle’s_ many exhibits.”

“There was no way to know that our night was about to take a devastating turn, or that it would be the last time we’d see our beloveds through mortal eyes.”


	6. Eat Me, Drink Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Copia and Terzo have an encounter that not only has dire consequences, but changes their lives forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings for blood, vampiric feeding, and the death of a pivotal character.

Copia fell silent for several moments, and his anguish was apparent now that they were approaching the climax of his story. Despite how his eyes had glazed over, he cleared his throat and continued. “The vampire had noticed us first, and once he’d been able to gauge our interest after he’d caught our eye, he then approached us. He was just our type: a near-carbon copy of our dear Omega, only younger and with dark hair, dark eyes, and a French accent.”

“As you may recall, I was recovering from anemia at the time, and the dark circles had formed around my eyes due to my illness. I was already feeling somewhat self-conscious about it and had taken to wearing a pair of silver, oval-shaped sunglasses with dark grey-tinted lens throughout our trip that mostly covered that which I sought to hide. Bear in mind that the sunglasses selection in the late 19th century was not what it is today,” Copia informed his guest with a bit of a smirk, and the young man huffed out a laugh in amusement. “I removed my sunglasses after he’d been in our company for some time, and when he didn’t recoil in horror at my appearance, I knew he’d be joining us that night.”

“On the carriage ride to the hotel, he kept complimenting how we smelled; our naïve selves thought he was commenting on our colognes, but it was the scent of what ran through our veins that was the impetus for his flattery.”

“Once we arrived at the hotel, we were able to quickly figure out the room situation; Omega hadn’t yet been assigned a room as they had been waiting for other guests to check out so a room would be available. We requested wine to be brought up by room service, and then we went to our room. It was considerably smaller than our suite, yet it was still quite nice as this was a luxury hotel.”

“We hadn’t yet reached our room when the fun started…”

***

_The Parisian Omega-lookalike stood between Terzo and Luka at the back of the elevator as it ascended. They were not alone; the lift attendant and a handful of other passengers were in the lift with them, yet that didn’t stop their companion from palming Copia’s member through his pants and finding that it was already half-hard from the anticipation that had been building since they first met. Luka gasped, and when heads started to turn, he coughed to clear his throat before mumbling his apologies while their guest stroked along his growing length._

_“You are an exhibitionist, oui?” he hissed in Copia’s ear, quiet enough so that it was heard by no one other than its intended audience. “I saw you and your other lover, how you touched him. Did you want to ride his throbbing cock, just as you’ll now be riding mine?”_

_Luka was unable to bite back the soft moan that followed, and heads again started to turn. He could feel a flush creeping up his face at the attention he was attracting, yet he couldn’t bring himself to push Parisian Omega’s hand away. He mumbled his apologies again before looking beyond their guest to see Terzo was watching attentively from where he stood. His eyes met Copia’s, and his mouth curved into a wicked grin._

_The elevator stopped at the third floor; two passengers left before the lift continued on to the fourth floor, their destination. They exited the lift after the doors had opened, and the trio set off in the direction of their room. Once they were behind closed doors, their clothing was frantically removed as they undressed each other en route to the bed, and in no time at all Luka found himself being drilled from behind by Parisian Omega while he also sucked Terzo’s cock._

_They were interrupted by a knock. Terzo reluctantly withdrew his member from Copia’s mouth before grabbing his robe and throwing the garment on without securing it as he made his way to the door. Behind him, their guest continued to pound away at Luka’s ass._

_Terzo opened the door to find a room service employee with a cart that carried three bottles of chilled cabernet sauvignon. “Ah, merci,” he said nonchalantly as he stepped back so the employee could enter the room. The young man pushed the cart forward, getting an eyeful of Terzo’s cock as it jutted out from his open robe and also of Copia getting fucked by their Parisian Omega. He offered no reaction, however, presenting himself as the picture of professionalism._

_He proceeded to open one of the bottles before Terzo stopped him from pouring the wine into the accompanying glasses when he offered to do so; Terzo thanked him for his service, gave him a substantial tip, and then dismissed him, closing and locking the door after the young man had taken his leave._

_Terzo removed his robe, allowing it to drop unceremoniously to the floor as he again crossed the room, grabbing the open bottle of wine as he was en route to the bed. “Where did we leave off…?” he asked Luka with a wolfish grin before he proceeded to again feed his long-time partner his member._

***

“We did not notice how little our guest was drinking compared to us, and within a couple of hours, we’d gone through all three bottles of wine and were properly intoxicated. I had even passed out for a short time, and as I was coming to, I realized that things were not quite right.”

***

_Copia awoke to the sound of Terzo’s moans. He was bleary-eyed and light-headed, and definitely feeling the effects of the alcohol he’d consumed. He was sprawled out on one side of the bed, with Terzo and their Parisian Omega to his right._

_Luka turned his head in the direction of the moans to see their guest atop Terzo, whose head was bent at an awkward angle in Copia’s direction with the other man’s face buried in his neck. Terzo’s eyes were closed as Parisian Omega thrusted into him at a brutal pace._

_Despite his inebriation, Luka could still feel his body reacting to the scene before him. They’d gone several rounds with their younger counterpart, and part of Copia swelled with pride that he and Terzo—two virile men in their late 50s—were still able to keep up with someone half their age._

_Terzo’s eyes suddenly opened, and Luka felt ice run through his veins when he saw the fear and confusion in his lover’s mismatched gaze. Terzo licked his lips before mouthing something to Copia that he correctly interpreted as “vampire”. Luka’s eyes widened and his mouth fell open; overcome by the shock of the situation, he was frozen in place, unable to take any meaningful action in an attempt to save Terzo’s or his own life. Terzo’s hand crept in Copia’s direction, cautiously feeling its way until he found what he sought before he grasped Luka’s hand._

_Copia watched in horror as the color drained from Terzo’s face and the life slowly disappeared from his eyes._

***

“At some point, the vampire turned his attention on me,” the older man recalled before pausing a moment to drink from his goblet. “I had heard about vampires, but I did not know until that moment that they were real. I tried to fight him off, but I was far too weak in my condition and he was much too strong. I keened when his sharp teeth sunk into my neck, piercing my skin and then the vein from which he fed. The vampire had moved so he was on his knees between myself and Terzo, and he had pulled me up against him as if I were some ragdoll. I could see the lower half of Terzo’s body, still as a corpse, and I willed him to move, to show some sign of life. I thought he was gone, and in that moment, I was certain I would join him. My life flashed before my eyes, and although I mourned the loss of my Vincenzo and that I was leaving my beloved Desdemona behind, I felt at peace as I recalled that I would find Omega in my next life.”

***

_Two floors up in their shared suite, the Quintessence Ghoul was on his stomach between his lover’s legs, worshipping her as he was wont to do. He lapped away at her in earnest, when he suddenly felt that something was very wrong. Desi ran her fingers through his hair, sensing his distraction. “What’s wrong, my love?” she whispered._

_Their eyes met as Omega lifted his head. “I…I’m not sure, min älskling,” he murmured before he pushed himself up so he was kneeling between her legs. He ran a hand over his lower face, removing the remnants of his lover’s arousal before wiping his extremity on the sheet. “But it…it feels like…like something is wrong with Luka.”_

_Desi sat up, alarmed that Copia and Terzo could somehow be in danger. “Should we go find them?”_

_The Quintessence Ghoul launched himself from the bed at the suggestion. He searched the floor for his pants, finding them after a few moments that stretched on far too long for his liking and then struggling to put them on in his haste. His erection had quickly waned, and he was easily able to fasten his button and pull up the zipper once his pants were in place._

_“Omega?” Desi called from the bed._

_“You stay here, min älskling,” he demanded from the doorway as he stomped out of the bedroom, and he’d nearly made it across the living room to the entryway when he heard her feet pattering after him. He turned around, incredulous when he saw that she’d slipped on the white silk nightgown he’d bought for her a few nights ago, and that she was intent on joining him. “Absolutely not, Desdemona,” he growled as he grabbed her wrist when she tried to move passed him en route to the door._

_She defiantly wrenched her arm away from him. “You might need my help, Omega,” she heatedly reasoned with him. “And we’re wasting time by arguing over this!”_

_“Fine,” he sighed in acquiescence before he unlocked and opened the door, knowing that she was right._

_Desi and the Quintessence Ghoul bolted down the hallway with the latter leading the way, unsure of their lovers’ whereabouts as Omega attempted to locate their scent with his highly-developed olfactory system._

_They worked their way through the sixth floor, and then through the fifth before moving onto the fourth. Desi and the Quintessence Ghoul emerged from the stairwell, and Omega instantly picked up Copia and Terzo’s scents. “They’re on this floor,” he informed her as they resumed their search, this time knowing they were heading in the right direction._

_Following the scent he caught, Desi and the Aether Ghoul sprinted down the hall, the sound of their bare feet muffled by the carpeting. After passing several doors, Omega came to a screeching halt in front of room #403. He pounded his fist against the door and waited a moment for any signs of movement from the other side._

_They heard a thud against the floor, followed by muffled footsteps that weren’t coming in the direction of the door. The Quintessence Ghoul knocked again, this time calling out the names of his loved ones. “Luka? Terzo?” he bellowed. “Please open the door!”_

_He pounded against the door again when they failed to open it, and moments later, he utilized a burst of his ghoulish strength and forced the door open. From the doorway, he could see a figure on the balcony, looking back at him before it suddenly disappeared._

_Omega rushed into the room, followed closely by Desi, and they found that the Quintessence Ghoul’s premonition had been correct. “No, no, no!” Omega wailed as he rushed to Luka’s side. He was face-down on the bed, and blood had soaked a small portion of the blanket near his head._

_They found Terzo on his back on the floor with his limbs askew, and Desi attended to him while Omega dealt with Copia. After a quick inspection, the Aether Ghoul located the puncture wounds on his beloved’s neck, and he instantly knew they’d fallen victim to a vampire. Omega collapsed over Luka, sobbing as he attempted to heal the wounds on his neck to stop the bleeding._

_“What happened?” Desi gasped as she positioned herself so Terzo’s head could rest in her lap. She checked his pulse, and found that while he had one, it was very faint. “A vampire,” the Quintessence Ghoul uttered as he too checked Copia for a pulse, and also found one that was perilously weak. Upon further inspection, both Terzo and Copia were breathing, albeit very slow and shallow to where their chests barely moved with each breath._

_Desi’s head snapped up in alarm. “What do we do?” she cried. “We can’t just let them die!”_

***

“I could hear them, and it all felt like a fever dream. I did not know if Omega would be able to save us or not. As an Aether Ghoul, he had certain healing abilities, but they weren’t a ‘cure-all’, mind you. His powers had been ineffective with my anemia, much to his chagrin, and there were other illnesses that he was powerless against. In this instance, we’d been nearly drained of our blood; what were they to do?”

***

_His mind was made up._

_Omega didn’t know how they would react to his ghoulish blood and was afraid that it would hasten their death. He was determined to save them, in any way that he could, and he decided that he was going to find someone—anyone—that could potentially serve as a food source for his lovers. He made his way off the bed and onto the floor, stumbling after he’d tripped over the clothes that had been discarded earlier in their encounter with the vampire._

_“Where are you going?” Desi called after him._

_“They can’t drink from me,” he informed her. “I need to find someone else!”_

_Desi removed Terzo’s head from her lap, made her way to her feet, and then followed her ghoul as she had when they were still in the suite. “But Omega,” she protested. “That is not your decision to make, to take someone else’s life into your own hands like that.”_

_He knew she was right, and he hated it. That would leave only one possibility, and he prayed to the Dark Lord that it wouldn’t come to this._

_“They should drink from me,” she suggested as she thrust her arm in his direction, silently urging him to slice through her skin and make a wound from which she could offer herself to their lovers._

_“Absolutely not, Desdemona!” he roared in response. “I won’t allow it!”_

_“Again, it’s not your decision to make, Omega!” she pushed back before softening in an attempt to calmly get him to see things her way. Desi placed her hands on his bare chest and gazed up at him. “Look at me,” she gently demanded, and after fighting against it for a few moments, he finally met her gaze. His eyes were bloodshot and puffy from crying, and his anguish was palpable._

_“We have to try this,” she softly reasoned with her ghoul._

_His eyes welled up with tears. “But I don’t want to lose you,” he sobbed._

_Desi’s hands moved from his chest to the sides of his face. “You’re not going to lose me, my love,” she murmured. “But if we don’t try this, we’re going to lose both of them.”_

_The Quintessence Ghoul’s shoulders sagged and his body trembled as he wept. “We’re wasting precious time, Omega,” she gently pushed. “We’ll just let them drink enough to buy a little more time so we can figure out what to do.”_

_Omega took her in his arms and held her close to him while he cried into her hair. Desi wrapped her arms around him and rested her head on his chest; the strong and steady beat of his heart that had lulled her to sleep many a night had taken on a different tempo as it pounded against his ribcage as if it were a prisoner trying to break free from its captivity._

_A pained moan from behind ended their moment. Desi pulled away and again offered her arm to him with her inner wrist exposed. She then watched as he dropped enough of his glamour for a single claw to materialize, but he hesitated as it hovered over her skin. “Just do it,” she encouraged. “I know it’ll hurt, but I also know you’ll heal me afterwards, my love.”_

_The Aether Ghoul grabbed her wrist, brought it to his lips, and gave it a soft and tender kiss before he did what he knew had to be done. The blood came fast and furious, and although it was alarming for Desi to see it gush from the wound Omega had inflicted, they rushed back towards Copia and Terzo. She shot a look at her ghoul, silently asking which should receive her blood first. “Luka,” was his response._

***

“I felt something wet against my lips, and when I tried to turn my head, Desdemona insisted that I drink. It did not occur to me what was going on, but I did as I was told. I opened my mouth, and a deluge of blood followed.” Copia shuddered and made a face at the recollection. “I…I did not like the taste at the time. The metallic tang against my tongue was unpleasant, and I had all I could do to swallow it down…but it helped. And soon enough, I was cognizant enough to know that Vincenzo too was in need of this life-saving sustenance, and I urged Desi to attend to him, which she did without delay. I was still weak but no longer clinging to life by what felt like a rapidly-fraying thread, and Omega rushed to my side and held me as we watched Desi offer her wrist to Terzo…”

***

_“Are you okay, min älskling?” the Quintessence Ghoul asked after Terzo had opened his mouth in acceptance of what was being offered to him. “I’m fine, my love,” Desi assured him with a soft but slightly pained smile. She did not know how much blood she had lost; she felt a bit woozy but didn’t want to alarm Omega before Terzo was able to get the sustenance required for his survival._

_After several moments, Terzo’s eyes opened, and soon after he grasped Desi’s arm, sealed his lips around the wound in her wrist, and fed from her. “Whoa, Terzo,” she softly chuckled as she lovingly ran her fingers through his raven-colored locks._

_“Desi…?” the Quintessence Ghoul murmured from the bed, and she again assured him that she was fine before shifting her attention back to Terzo. Her skin had started to feel cold and clammy, and her lightheadedness had increased. “Another minute, Terzo,” she murmured to him. “And you’ll need to stop. I need to keep some blood for myself, after all…”_

_Terzo’s eyes smiled up at her and he gave a slight nod of acknowledgment; he was grateful that this beautiful creature had saved him, although he silently wondered why they had chosen Copia over him as the first to feed. Did they love Luka more than they loved him? Had they hoped Terzo would die during that time so Omega could have Luka to himself? Had the last thirty years of his life been one big lie? As he retreated deeper and deeper into his own mind, he paid less and less attention to the condition of the one from whom he fed._

_“Desi…?” came Omega’s voice, to which there was no response._

_“Desi…?” he tried again, with the same result._

_Terzo released her from his grasp, and he realized she was slumped against the nightstand behind her, unconscious. Panic and alarm followed as the Quintessence Ghoul flew off the bed and dropped to his knees next to her. “No, this isn’t happening,” he cried in disbelief as he took her limp body in his arms. "I...I didn't mean to..." Terzo insisted as he backed away and watched as Omega first utilized his healing powers to stop the bleeding and close the wound on her wrist, and then as he made his way to his feet with Desi cradled against him._

_He brought her to the bed and gently laid her upon it as he attempted to attend to her. Desi’s heartbeat was fast and erratic, and her breathing was shallow and rapid. The Quintessence Ghoul noticed how pale she’d become, and how cool and moist her skin felt. He tried to focus his abilities on her, but grew more and more panicked as the minutes ticked by with no favorable results._

_“I don’t know what to do!” he sobbed as his attempts continued to no avail._

***

Copia stopped, and the younger man noticed how the tears streamed down his cheeks. “And then she was gone,” he murmured. “Her heart stopped. Her breathing ceased. And she was gone.” The older man let out a harsh breath, hung his head, and quietly sobbed as his guest watched in silence, and it was several minutes before he was able to continue. “We were able to convince the hotel staff and the police that she had drank too much and died from alcohol poisoning. When you have money and influence, it is easy to convince others of such things, and it cleared the way for us to make last-minute plans to travel back home so we could put Desdemona to rest.”

“Omega was a shell of himself. He wouldn’t eat. He wouldn’t sleep. He wouldn’t really even talk to us. He just went through the motions of it all. I suspected that he partially blamed Terzo, but that he blamed himself most of all. I knew Omega and didn’t take his behavior personally; we’d all just been dealt a huge blow, and we all grieved in our own ways. But for Vincenzo…oh, it was a personal affront that cast further doubt on our ghoul’s feelings for him.”

“And with that, a deep chasm started to form between him and Omega that resulted in Omega’s demise.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot to digest in this chapter. Take some time and prepare yourselves for what is yet to come. The hurt will continue in chapter 7.


	7. Lost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The young man learns what happened to Omega, and Copia experiences a spark of hope.

“It was three months before Omega started to come around, and for a short time, I was hopeful we’d be able to put things behind us and move on. It was a period of adjustment for our trio as we came to terms with the devastating loss of Desdemona’s life and our adaptation to vampirism.”

“Our transition wasn’t a sudden change; rather something that occurred over the course of nearly a week, and we’ve learned much since we were turned. For instance, it is very likely that the vampire we encountered was trying to kill us, not change us. A bite is sufficient for a vampire to infect its victim; it is not necessary to drain their blood to finish the job. We were fed upon, and had Omega and Desi not interrupted our assailant when they had, Vincenzo and I would not be here today. And had Desi not fed us as she did, that also would’ve resulted in our deaths. It was also what set the wheels in motion for our transformation.”

“The external changes were few. We still look the same, but our skin and eyes are hypersensitive to natural light, and can easily be damaged if we—“

“Mr. Copia, I’m sorry to interrupt,” the young man interjected. “But I have a quick question.” The older man quirked an eyebrow and gesticulated in his guest’s direction for him to continue. “The vampire that you encountered in Paris; how was it possible for him to be in the daylight as he was? Unless you had a late dinner and it was already dark…?”

“No, no…it was still light out, and we wondered that ourselves for many years,” Copia replied with a shrug. “It wasn’t until we had met more of our kind that we learned that it’s possible to build up a tolerance to sunlight. It is a long and painful process, but it can be done.” The young man nodded his understanding, and when he asked no follow-up questions, the older man continued. “As I was saying, our skin and eyes are hypersensitive to natural light and can easily be damaged if we come into contact with such light. In addition, our canine teeth elongate when we feed. Otherwise, they look normal.” The older man lifted part of his upper lip to expose one of his canines, and the young man leaned forward to see that it did indeed look like a normal human tooth and not a fang. He then watched with wide eyes as the tooth elongated and tapered to a sharp point.

“Wow,” the younger man gasped as awe overtook his face, and any lingering doubt he had regarding the validity of Copia’s claim to be a vampire disappeared. The older man released his lip, and the young man sat back again with a jaw that was still slack.

“As for internal changes, we are still able to eat and drink to maintain the appearance of being human while in the company of those who do not know about our condition, but it provides us with no meaningful nourishment. I drink this wine—“ Copia held up his goblet for emphasis before lowering it again. “—because I like the taste. It will have no effect on me, however, nor will it poison my system if I drink too much. The nourishment required for our survival comes from the blood we consume, but we do not prey on others as we were preyed upon ourselves.”

The young man smirked. “So you and Terzo are ethical vampires…?”

Copia huffed out a laugh. “ _S_ _ì_ , you could say that,” he replied with a smirk of his own. “Our ministry has long been aware of our condition, and countless Siblings have donated their blood over the years to keep us supplied. It is, of course, all voluntary, and occasionally, a Sibling wishes for us to feed from them directly. We do not bite them, however. Vincenzo and I keep a special knife in our quarters for these occasions that is sterilized before and after every use. And more often than not, the direct feedings also include sex as it is a fantasy for many to be with a vampire in that manner.” The older man shrugged when he saw his guest’s eyes widen. “We do not judge as our ministry is very kink-friendly.”

“We are very fortunate,” Copia then continued. “Unlike other vampires, we do not need to hunt for our food source as it is readily offered to us. We have, however, found from experience that we cannot consume ghoulish blood. Vincenzo attempted it once, and it nearly killed him. Omega had been correct in not allowing us to drink from him that night.” Copia sighed after taking a drink of his wine. “And that brings us back to Omega.”

“As you are aware, Omega was an Aether Ghoul, the rarest and most powerful of the ghoul variety. The Aether is a mysterious and volatile element, one that helps keep the other elements in balance. There is no limit for how many fire, water, earth, or air ghouls or ghoulettes we can have, but only one ghoul of the Aether is allowed topside at any given time.”

“Due to the volatility of his element, it was necessary for Omega to avoid being overly emotional. He expressed emotion as we all do, but his emotional range was best kept within defined limits that he had identified during his long lifetime. He didn’t know exactly what would happen if he were to lose control, but he assumed that the consequences would be dire. This was…” Copia paused to sigh. “…yet another thing that he was correct about.”

“It started with Vincenzo making passive-aggressive comments in Omega’s presence, and when I would come to his defense, Vincenzo would accuse me of coddling him too much and would then be angry with me for not taking _his_ side. He would pick fights with Omega over the most trivial things, and I would get caught in the crossfire. And from there, it kept escalating because nothing Omega or I could say or do was enough to exorcise the demons of doubt from Vincenzo’s mind.”

“I will not make excuses for Vincenzo’s behavior throughout all of this,” Copia stated with a sigh. “It was awful and unforgivable. He was the initiator in nearly every argument and antagonized Omega to the point of no return.”

“Why didn’t you leave, Mr. Copia?” the young man queried with a slightly perplexed frown.

“For many reasons,” the older man replied. “I knew that Vincenzo was hurting just as bad as we were, if not worse because Desdemona had died in his hands. It was an accident, of course, and neither Omega nor I blamed him for her death. But he blamed himself, and he projected that blame onto Omega.”

“I would also see Vincenzo at his most vulnerable after these fights. He would break down and apologize to me, and he would later apologize to Omega. He had moments of lucidity where he realized what he was doing and would promise to stop because he didn’t want to lose me or Omega. But then the doubt would return and cloud his senses again, and it turned into a vicious cycle that came to its boiling point six months after our nightmare began…”

***

_Copia sat on the edge of the sofa with his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands as he listened to Vincenzo and Omega quarrel. Somehow, it was their worst fight yet, and he’d had enough. “Would you two please just stop?” he shouted at the top of his lungs as he stood up. The room fell silent, and his outburst earned him flummoxed looks from his lovers. He wasn’t done yet._

_Luka threw his hands in the air as he stormed in their direction. “I’ve had enough of this,” he seethed through clenched teeth. “And this needs to stop, once and for all!”_

***

“In a way, I got what I asked for,” he rasped with a rueful smile. “Vincenzo had already pushed Omega to his upper limit, and I was afraid of what would happen if he pushed him anymore. And while I had no reason to believe that Omega would harm Vincenzo, a small part of me feared that he would push our ghoul to the point where that might change.”

“After my outburst, I demanded that they settle things. I was upset and needed to get away from them, so I left and went for a walk in our gardens. It was after midnight, and it was a lovely evening, perfect for getting some much-needed air, even though we don’t require it for our survival. Breathing is a voluntary reflex, something we do even now out of habit, like we will die if we don’t, even though we technically died during our transformation.”

“At any rate, I hadn’t been outside long—half an hour, perhaps—when I heard Alpha, our senior-most Fire Ghoul, call out my name.”

***

_“Cardinal Copia!”_

_Copia looked over his shoulder from where he sat on one of benches that surrounded the abbey’s replica of the Fountain of the Fallen Angel, and he could see Alpha sprinting across the lawn at top speed in his direction. As he neared, the Cardinal could see that the Fire Ghoul’s eyes were wide in alarm. “What is it, Alpha?” Luka asked with a concerned frown as he left the bench and started to walk in the ghoul’s direction._

_“It’s…it’s Omega! Come quick!”_

_Alpha didn’t need to say anything further. Copia’s gait transitioned from walking to running, and the Fire Ghoul reversed course when he saw Luka was en route. Both came to a sudden halt when they were still about twenty meters away from the entrance; they heard an immense explosion from the abbey’s north wing, followed by a partial collapse of the structure and a brilliant burst of purple light from within. They could feel the tremor caused by the power of the explosion from whence they stood, and they resumed their scramble towards the abbey after exchanging looks of horror._

_Panic ensued in the abbey as Siblings and ghouls rushed through the corridors towards the north wing to help those that had been injured or trapped by the explosion, with injured Siblings and ghouls that were able to flee the destruction heading in the opposite direction._

_"They were heading for the summoning chamber…” the Fire Ghoul informed the Cardinal as he led Luka through the melee, and the trepidation was evident in Alpha’s quick glance at the clergyman._

_The staircase that led to the underground level that contained the summoning chamber was damaged, but still intact and functional. “Watch your step,” Alpha warned as he sidestepped chunks of stone as they descended, and the Fire Ghoul was quick to catch the Cardinal when his foot caught on a raised crack on the landing that led to last flight of stairs._

_They could already hear raised voices coming from the lower level as they bounded down the final few stairs, and when they turned the corner after the last step, Copia and the Fire Ghoul found that the area in front of the summoning chamber had been completely destroyed and was a giant pile of rubble. Several of Alpha’s brethren were already hard at work, digging through the destruction in hopes of finding Omega._

_The Fire Ghoul joined the efforts as the Cardinal stood at the bottom of the staircase, unable to believe his eyes. His attention was diverted by sobs coming from behind him, and when he turned around, he found Terzo slumped against a wall several meters away. He rushed to Vincenzo’s side, dropping to his knees to attend to his lover._

_“They won’t find him,” he sniveled. “He’s lost to the Aether.”_

_***_

Copia sighed, and the young man could see tears streaming down his face again. “Vincenzo had been with Omega, trying to get him into the summoning chamber as it should’ve been able to withstand the blast. It was heavily fortified and had withstood summonings gone wrong in the past, including one with Omega’s predecessor.”

The older man paused to clear his throat before he continued. “Omega had been like a ticking time-bomb after being pushed beyond his breaking point by Vincenzo after I had left, and it was a race against time as Vincenzo and Alpha tried to get Omega to the summoning chamber. Vincenzo had sent Alpha to find me while he continued on with Omega, and the chamber was within reach when time ran out. The force of the combustion sent Vincenzo across the open area outside the summoning chamber, and there was an indent in the wall from the impact of his body. He only survived because he was a vampire; had he been human, the blast would’ve killed him.”

“As it was, his clothing was tattered and covered in debris, and his skin was temporarily marred with rapidly-healing wounds. He was inconsolable as the search continued, and I knew deep down that Omega was gone, that he’d been lost to the Aether as Vincenzo had said, but I still held out a small amount of hope that his brothers would find him. Alas, they did not.”

“What they did find though…” Copia paused and reached into the chest pocket on his shirt and produced a thick silver ring that the young man recognized immediately from the picture he’d been shown earlier.

“Omega’s ring...” he said with great reverence, to which the older man nodded. “ _S_ _ì_ ,” the vampire replied. “His rings were found at the bottom of the rubble. Both Vincenzo and I each kept one of the rings he wore on his ring fingers, and the smaller one is kept with Desdemona in the mausoleum.”

The younger man leaned forward, transfixed by the ring that had belonged to the Quintessence Ghoul. The vampire moved to the edge of his seat and held out his hand to his guest. “I’ve carried this with me for more than a century,” he explained as the young man hesitantly reached out. “Go ahead…” With Copia’s encouragement, he allowed his index finger to come into contact with the silver band, and was promptly greeted with a _zap_. The jump of electricity produced a visible spark that surprised both men.

“Ow!” the young man exclaimed as he flinched and retracted his hand, shaking it in an attempt to dispel the tingling sensation that resulted.

“What was that…?” the vampire queried with a look of concern etched upon his face as he quickly pocketed the ring. “Are you alright?”

His guest laughed nervously. “I think so,” he replied as he looked at his finger. “Just surprised me, more than anything. It was probably static electricity from the carpeting in the hallway…”

Copia nodded as his brows drew even closer together. It was plausible, he supposed, but what if—?

His musings were cut short as the young man’s phone suddenly rang.

The young man lurched forward, fumbling with the device in his attempt to see who was calling, and—seeing that it was his mother—he knew he needed to take the call. “It’s my mom,” he quickly explained to Copia. “I need to take this…”

The vampire nodded before rising to his feet and walking towards the kitchen area to give the young man some privacy. He took a drink from his goblet as he walked, his mind returning to what had occurred when his guest had touched Omega’s ring. Copia had hoped for many years that his ghoul would be reincarnated and that he’d find his way back to him after their Dark Lord had long ago indicated that it could happen but would offer no additional details about when or what form he might take upon his return. “ _Would he even know who he was?_ ” the older man wondered to himself as he refilled his wine and watched the younger man from whence he stood.

He recalled after brief contemplation that he’d never known who he he’d been in his prior lives and decided that it would likely be the same for the Quintessence Ghoul. Copia had long hoped that Omega and Desdemona had been reunited in the afterlife, and perhaps his ghoul had been reluctant to leave her in order to return to him in the mortal realm.

The vampire continued to study his guest. There was nothing about the young man that screamed “ _I am Omega_ ”, but he again recalled that he had never looked the same from one life to the next. The Quintessence Ghoul had always been able to identify him regardless; why was he unable to reciprocate?

Even from across the room, his superior vampiric hearing allowed him to hear both sides of the conversation that was taking place despite the gears that were turning in his mind, and he knew that his guest would be departing soon. 

He was pulled from his own thoughts when the young man rocketed to his feet, shoving his phone in his pocket before he bent over just enough to swipe his bag from the floor. “I’m sorry, Mr. Copia,” his guest uttered as the words tumbled from his mouth. “Her car broke down, and my sisters are with her, and I need to go get—“

The older man held his hand up as he walked towards the young man. “No explanation needed,” he rasped. “You must go help your mother and sisters.” The worry emanated from his guest, and the vampire surmised that it was related to this unexpected expense that they were facing. Although it hadn’t directly been a topic of conversation between them, it seemed to Copia that his family was hanging on by a rapidly-fraying thread. He was then filled with a sudden determination to put his privilege to use and do what he could to rectify that.

As he accompanied the young man towards the door, an amused voice filled the cavernous room. “Leaving so soon…?”

Copia and his guest looked up to see Terzo descending the staircase, his raven locks bouncing a little with every step and causing a strand to fall over one of his mismatched eyes. He was dressed in a light purple button-up shirt, black pants, and black shoes, and the younger man thought to himself that—with the exception of their shirt color—the vampire couple was dressed almost identically.

“Ah, Vincenzo,” Luka rasped. “Allow me to introduce the young man that found my journal…”

***

Copia resisted the urge to watch the young man from the doorway and instead closed the door, turned, and walked in the opposite direction, passing Terzo as he set his sights on the hotel’s phone that sat on a small table near the staircase. “Well, he seemed interesting,” Vincenzo observed with a quirked eyebrow as he wondered what his long-time partner was up to. The other man hummed in agreement. “Perhaps even more than meets the eye,” he rasped without elaborating as he picked up the receiver, pressed a couple of numbers, and waited for the concierge to answer.


End file.
